Old Photograph Boys In Rowing Boat Harbour St Andrews Fife Scotland

Old photograph of boys in a rowing boats in the harbour in St Andrews, Fife, Scotland. On the 17th of August 1710, seven young St Andrews lads, full of adventure and with casual fishing in mind, left the safety of the stone harbour, rowing with enthusiasm their boat into the North Sea under a clear blue sky, as they had often done before. Soon a swell arose and before they could react, being several miles out from the harbour, they became caught out in a rather ferocious storm. They only carried basic picnic items of food and wine and were totally unprepared for the results of a storm. They were exposed and buffeted about, lost at sea for seven full days, till the boat eventually crashed on a rocky beach near Aberdeen, eighty kilometres up the coast from St Andrews. The boys were so worn out by thirst and fear and want of sleep, that they could scarcely crawl from the beach. The two eldest made the climb up the cliffs to raise help for their friends. A fisherman called Shepherd gave them aid, and medical help came from the local university, but it was much too late for two of the boys who soon died, of exposure and exhaustion.





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Old Photograph Falls of Blairgower Loch Awe Scotland

Old photograph of the Falls of Blairgower by Loch Awe, Scotland. One of the oldest Argyll clans, the Macarthurs owned lands around Loch Awe which was populated in close proximity with MacGregors, Campbells and Stewarts. It was from Loch Awe and surrounding area that Clan Campbell established itself as a powerful family. In 1308, Robert the Bruce defeated the Clan MacDougall at the Battle of the Pass of Brander downstream from the loch.



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Old Photograph Lower Falls of Moness Scotland

Old photograph of the Lower Falls of Moness at the Birks of Aberfeldy, Perthshire, Scotland. Robert Burns wrote the song, " The Birks Of Aberfeldy " in late August 1787, during a visit to the Birks of Aberfeldy, then known as the Den of Moness. Legend has it that Burns wrote the song after resting in a natural seat on the rock, just at the side of the Birks. This natural seat is well known and a plaque now exists at the exact spot where Burns was inspired to write the ballad.

Now simmer blinks on flow'ry braes,
And o'er the crystal streamlet plays,
Come, let us spend the lightsome days
In the birks of Aberfeldie!

(Chorus)
Bonnie lassie, will ye go,
will ye go, will ye go,
Bonnie lassie, will ye go
To the birks of Aberfeldie?

The little birdies blithely sing,
While o'er their heads the hazels hing;
Or lightly flit on wanton wing
In the birks of Aberfeldie!

The braes ascend like lofty wa's,
The foaming stream, deep-roaring, fa's,
O'er-hung wi'fragrant spreading shaws,
The birks of Aberfeldie.

The hoary cliffs are crown'd wi'flowers,
White o'er the linns the burnie pours,
And, rising, weets wi' misty showers
The birks of Aberfeldie.

Let Fortune's gifts at random flee,
They ne'er shall draw a wish frae me,
Supremely blest wi' love and thee
In the birks of Aberfeldie.



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Old Photograph Lower Falls of Falloch Scotland

Old photograph of the Lower Falls of Falloch, a waterfall and local beauty spot along the A82 road, three miles from the village of Crianlarich, Scotland. Gaelic: Eas Falach, means Hidden waterfall. Crianlarich has been a major crossroads for north and west bound journeys in the Highlands of Scotland since mediaeval times. In the 1750s, two military roads met in the village; in the 19th century, it became a railway junction on what is now the West Highland Line; in the 20th century it became the meeting point of the major A82 and A85 roads. As such, it is designated a primary destination in Scotland, signposted from as far as Glasgow and Paisley in the south, Perth, Perthshire, in the east, Oban in the west and Fort William in the north.



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Old Photograph Minnoch Bridge River Cree Newton Stewart Scotland

Old photograph of the Minnoch Bridge which spans the River Cree by Newton Stewart, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The River Cree runs through Newton Stewart and into the Solway Firth. It forms part of the boundary between the counties of Wigtownshire and Kirkcudbrightshire. The tributaries of the Cree are the Minnoch, Trool, Penkiln and Palnure which drain from the Range of the Awful Hand, the labyrinthine range of mountains and lochs, bogs, burns and crags, rising at its highest to The Merrick, Galloway, 12 miles to the north and visible from Newton Stewart. The Cree was also the source of power for the textile mills built in Newton Stewart in the 18th Century when water power was a key element in industrial development. Salmon fishing using stake nets can still be seen in the bay but are no longer common. Other traditional methods of salmon fishing using " haaf nets " have also declined. However, enthusiastic anglers return year after year to the Cree and fine fresh run salmon are still caught in worthwhile numbers.



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